Monday, January 29, 2007

This is not the real Ginger Chicken, in fact this is not even my Ma-in-laws Ginger Chicken. My Ma-in-law makes a very unique and tasty Chilli Chicken. Every state in India worth their salt has their unique version of Chili Chicken, there is Varanasi Chilli Chicken, The Kolkata Style Chilli Chicken, the Madrasi Chilli Chicken and then there is my Ma-in-laws Chilli Chicken.

Last year when she was here with us, she made this for us and everyone was pretty much bowled over by it. Her version did not have any garlic, yeah no garlic, I remember. However I had a gut feeling that she used a lot of ginger in it. So when I saw JFI Ginger for this month I thought I would make it as my entry. So deciding to make it for friends and for JFI I called her bright and early on Saturday Morning to get the recipe

So I said " Could you give me the recipe for the Chilli Chicken you make ?"She said " You need chicken, soy sauce, corn flour, blah blah …"I said "Yeah, that's fine but what about the Ginger…"

She said "Marinate the chicken in vinegar, soy sauce, blah, blah…"I said "But how much Ginger do I use ?"She gingerly side stepped my question and went on "Heat oil, fry the chicken pieces, blah, blah..."I was now desperate "But wait I really need to know about the Ginger, that is what is important, for all I care the chicken can take a backseat"

And she said " There's no Ginger…"I said "Whaaaaaaaaat NO GINGER, and you tell that now, What am I to do…"

All these numerous events had taken their toll, I knew I was cracking up. She the poor soul had no clue what was happening, so preferred to talk to her grand daughter about un-gingerly issues rather than giving me a recipe of a chili chicken sans gingerI was desperate, and my Ma said "What's the big deal, put a lot of Ginger instead, if it's not Chilli Chicken , it's going to be Ginger Chicken"

So that's what I did, and it turned out great. It had a gingery flavor and could well be Bengali Ginger Chicken. I was pretty flustered by this time to take exact measures, so measures are approximate (which it is in most of my cooking anyway)Read more...

Cut the Chicken in small piecesMarinate the chicken in Vinegar, Soy Sauce, Salt and 1/3 of the grated ginger for an hourSprinkle corn flour on the chicken and mixHeat Oil in Kadhai/Frying PanLightly Fry the chicken Pieces till they are brown. Remove and drain on paper towelGrind the Onion to paste. I already had Onion Paste so I used 4 tbsp of itTo the oil add the onion pasteFry till the onion is nicely brownedAdd the rest of the ginger, the green chillies and sauté a littleAdd 1 tsp of soy sauce. If you think you need more go ahead and do it.Add 1 tbsp of Hot & Sweet Maggi Tomato ketchupAdd saltAdd the fried chicken piecesSaute till the masla coats the chicken nicelyCook on low till the chicken is done. Avoid adding water, I just sprinkled a little

Mine was on the dry side. You can have a little gravy if you want. Serve it with Fried Rice or just by itself. Sending this for JFI Ginger to Rosie of WTRT Jim ? Heard she is moving, so hope she gets this in her Inbox.

Trivia: Tangra is a district in north-west Kolkata known for it's famous Chinatown. Food from Tangra is a distinct variety of traditional Chinese food adapted to Indian ingredients and the Bengali palate.

Hi Sandeepa!That was a fun read! The recipe looks good too, but my guess is it cant be made without chicken:))Could substitute soy chunks instead, maybe.Your republic day photograph was awesome too. I have not been able to get into ur blog for about a week now up. Blogger issue. Glad I could come in today.

I still do this calling up india for recipes....:)I was really bored n tired so thought of browsing through blogs...n am glad i did...really after reading your post my mind is refreshed :) Not forgetting your Ginger Chicken looks Yummy!!!

Yes, Sandeepa, this week I had problems too with comments I posted on other blogs (including yours) that weren't saved, so I wonder if people who have tried to comment on mine experienced the same thing...

Hi Sandeepa,Your blog & your way of presenting r totally unique as your name is(coz,I heard lot of sandeep(s) not Sandeepa(s):)Well,thanks a lot for the recipe.I tried in the evening,It came out very good.My family had water in there mouth as I cook and in there eyes as they eat.(In a good way though.I spiced it up:)so..Anyway,Good display, well told story and mainly, very tasty food..what more could be there to make a lazy person like me to go & cook!! Thanks again!! Take care.bye..

Love your blog. I tried this tonight. I put too much salt ( didn't take into consideration that soy sauce is salty too). I used ginger paste ( that you get in a jar in an indian store). Maybe I should have tried fresh ginger. It didn't turn out quite how I expected. Not as delicious as yours must be!But I definitely want to attempt it again!

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Predominantly a Bong, who loves being a Mom and loves to cook among other things for the li'l one and the big ones.She loves to write too and you will find her food spiced up with stories. Mainly a collection of Bengali Recipes with other kinds thrown in, in good measure. A Snapshot of Bengali Cuisine